Something to Be Said
by Shi-Toyu
Summary: In a world where everyone has a soulmate, Tony Stark's just slipped through his fingers. His soulmate had been in Tony's shop just the day before, but Tony had missed him. Between Clint and Loki, though, maybe Tony can find him again. FrostIron.


A/N: I started running across a few soulmate fics here and there and realized there weren't nearly enough of them to satisfy my need. Here's the first of several to come. Please enjoy!

Something to Be Said

"Umm…so are you going to hang out here scowling all day or are you going to tell me what I did wrong?"

Tony Stark blinked out of his thoughts to refocus on his employee. Clint's expression was an odd mix of irritated, bored, and petulant child. He was absolutely horrible with customers, but he managed Tony's inventory and designed displays like no one Tony had ever seen. It was really the only reason the genius kept him on the payroll. Well, that and he was absolutely terrified of Natasha, Barton's soulmate.

"What are you talking about?"

Clint rolled his eyes and leaned one hip against the cashier's station. Tony's electronics shop was the best in the city, but it was still dead empty at 9am on a Monday. They'd only been open for two hours, but Tony had made sure he was on the floor for all of it.

"You've been hovering around with that serious look on your face like the world is about to end. Listen, man, I like you and all but if you're going to fire me already at least do it now so I can go back to bed and get some sleep before Nat gets home, okay?"

Tony's eyebrows rose.

"I'm not going to fire you."

"You're not?"

"No."

"Write me up?"

"Nope."

"Dock my pay?"

"Not on the agenda."

"Ship me off to a warehouse in Thailand to work in your sweatshop?"

"Sweatsho-Where do you even come up with these things?"

Clint shrugged.

"It's a gift." There was a beat of silence between them before Clint spoke again. "So if you're not here to give me bad news, what's got your face making such a sour expression?"

Tony sighed. If there was anything he'd learned in the last year and a half of having the birdbrain as an employee, it was that Clint didn't let anything get away from him once it caught his attention. That and he would start climbing the shelves instead of using the ladder if no one was watching him.

"He came in yesterday. My soulmate."

The pen Clint had been flipping back and forth across his knuckles clattered to the ground. He gaped at Tony like a fish out of water.

"Holy shit, dude! Why the Hell are you _here_ then? What aren't you sexing it up with that man-love of yours?"

Tony clenched his hands into fists and stubbornly refused to look at Clint's face.

"Because I didn't meet him. I found his name on one of the credit card receipts when I was counting the drawers last night. He was _here_, _in the store_, and I missed him!"

Everyone in the world had their soulmate's name scrawled across their heart. It was how you knew when you met your other half. Tony had been waiting for his soulmate to appear his entire life. After the betrayal from his father, Obie, and just about everyone else he'd held dear, he just wanted someone he knew he could trust.

Clint's expression had shifted to one of sympathy and he nudged Tony's ankle with the toe of his shoe in what Tony could only assume was a show of affection. For all his faults, Barton was a good guy and Tony really did like him.

"And you still haven't gotten around to fixing the cameras yet, have you?"

A bitter chuckle forced its way from Tony's throat.

"Pepper always said my procrastination was going to come back to bite me in the ass one day…"

Clint hummed noncommittally and they both took a few minutes to just gaze out across the floor, each wrapped up in their own thoughts.

"So that's why you're out here, then, to make sure you catch him when he comes back."

"_If_ he comes back. Be realistic. What are the chances he's going to come back in the very next day? I just…I don't know what else to do."

Tony hated feeling so lost. He was always the man with the plan. He always knew exactly how to get what he wanted, even if those plans went up in flames most of the time. Clint just shrugged.

"That Odinson douchebag seems to find something to come in for practically every day. Why not your soulmate? I mean, it's kind of a law of the universe that you have to meet at some point, right?"

Tony shot Clint a glare, but there was no heat behind it. It wasn't exactly a secret that Clint had strong negative feeling towards that particular client. He'd criticized Clint's entire sales approach the first day they'd met, taken the employee to pieces in a matter of minutes, and Clint had been holding a grudge ever since. It didn't help that Loki _had_ been coming in practically every day since Tony had hired his brother as a favor to his friend Jane, Thor's soulmate. Some days it felt like everyone was finding their match except for him.

The first time he'd met the tall, lanky man, he'd taken note of how attractive he was. Tony had always had a thing for dark hair and bright eyes. Then he'd found out his name was Loki and nearly had a heart attack, but the last name of Odinson had quickly followed and dashed all of the shop owner's dreams before they'd ever really even taken flight. He'd never mentioned it to Loki, just introduced himself as, "Tony, Thor's boss. Genius, businessman, playboy, philanthropist." There was no need to make things weird.

"Oh, great. Speak of the Devil and he shall appear…I'll be in the back."

Tony was once again drawn out of his thoughts by Clint's words, this time spoken in a near growl. A quick glance towards the door revealed that Loki had just pushed through them, shaking the rain out of his umbrella on the mat and setting it primly against the wall so it wouldn't drip all over the floor. It was pouring outside and Tony could absolutely appreciate the gesture. He hated it when customers slopped water all over the store and around his precious, sensitive technology.

"Hey, stranger. It's been a while."

Loki looked up at the sound of his voice and smiled, though it didn't quite reach his eyes.

"Only because you have not been around. Are you too busy to mingle now that you've opened a second location?"

Tony laughed, the cloud of despair that had surrounded him since the night before dissipating for the time being. Loki always had a way of making him feel lighter.

"Nah. I let Pepper handle all of that. I'm pretty sure I'd just get in the way over there…I'm surprised you haven't taken your business over there, what with your brother working at that location now."

Loki's face instantly darkened and Tony's eyebrows shot upwards in alarm. He'd never seen the man look so angry before. As quickly as it was there, the expression had been wiped away, though.

"Apologies. There have recently been some…troubles in the family, you could say."

"Oh…I'm, uh…sorry to hear that." Tony had never really been any good at dealing with emotions, so he thought it would be an excellent time to change the subject. "Well, hey, funny story. Somebody with your name came in yesterday. I mean, different last name, but yeah."

It was obvious that Loki saw through Tony's deflection, but his eyes said he was grateful for it. He probably didn't want to talk about it any more than Tony did.

"Indeed? I don't believe I've ever met someone who has shared my name."

Tony shrugged.

"Me neither. But I guess there's a first time for everything. The last name was Laufeyson, though, not Odinson."

Tony didn't know why he was still talking about this, telling Loki about his soulmate that he'd missed out on meeting. It was just the first thing that'd come to mind and now he couldn't seem to stop. He was so busy kicking himself that he almost missed the way that Loki's entire body stiffened like a bowstring before he heaved a sigh and appeared to completely deflate. Tony's brow creased in confusion.

"You alright?"

He moved closer to the man, cupping his elbow and leading him over to the seating area in front of the flat screen TV displays. Tony had really only put the couches there so he'd have somewhere to sleep when he didn't make it home for the night.

"I suppose," Loki began, "if I am going to tell someone, it would be you."

Tony was completely confused. What did Loki know about his soulmate? And since when was he important enough to the man to hear his secrets? Sure, they talked practically every time Loki came in and there was a definite connection there, but they'd never seen each other outside of the shop.

"Sure. Tell me whatever you want."

"About four months ago, I discovered that I was adopted. Thor's family found me as a baby and took me in. I…did not take the news well."

"I remember…you stopped coming in for, like, three weeks. Thor was worried sick. He wouldn't talk about anything else, but he wouldn't tell anyone what was going on, either."

Loki nodded.

"I was digging up everything I could find on my birth family. They're dead now, by the way, my real parents. They died only a few years ago…all this time they were out there but they passed away before I could find out the truth…"

"That sucks."

Loki huffed in what could have been a laugh, but Tony wasn't quite sure.

"I changed by name back to match theirs. It took forever to get everything sorted out with the government documents. I only got my replacement credit cards last week. That is why it showed up with a new name."

He dug in his pocket for his wallet, pulling out a plastic card and handing it over to Tony. The genius stared at the tiny letters stamped into it just below the number, Loki Laufeyson. His brain felt like it was moving through molasses. Or maybe it was moving so fast that he just couldn't keep up.

"You're Loki Laufeyson."

Loki nodded, eyeing him oddly.

"Yes…"

"Oh, my God…I can't believe this…"

Loki's brow was furrowed and his lips were pinched together in a way Tony had always found endearing. Now he wanted nothing more than to push his own lips against them.

"What is it?"

A grin spread across Tony's face, so broad it made his cheeks hurt.

"You're my soulmate."

He had to laugh aloud at that, happiness bubbling over at the realization. Saying it out loud just made it so much more _real_ and he continued grinning as he watched the emotions play across Loki's face.

"Tony…is short for Anthony…"

More beaming. His cheeks were going to ache like a bitch later on, but he couldn't bring himself to care, much less stop.

"Yeah. Anthony Edward Stark."

Loki made the huffing noise again, though this time Tony could definitely tell it was a laugh.

"All of this time, and you were _right here_…"

"I _know_…I guess there's something to be said for introducing yourself with your full name…would have cleared up a lot of things a lot faster."

Loki snorted before sending him a sideways glance, a heat in his gaze that Tony was more than happy to accommodate.

"I'm not sure about you, but I'd certainly be open to taking this opportunity to become…better acquainted."

Tony was up and pulling him towards the door before he even had the time to think about it.

"_CLINT! CLINT, GET OUT HERE!_"

There was a crash of something tumbling over and then Clint all but fell through the door that led to the back storage area.

"What is it? What's going on? If this is about the waffle maker, I didn't do it."

"No time for your shit, Barton. I've got to go sex it up with my man-love, as you so accurately put it."

Clint froze, did a double-take, and let confusion cloud his expression.

"Uhhh…"

Tony just waved him off. Once again, no time for that shit.

"Name change. Gotta go. Look after the shop."

He grabbed Loki's umbrella on their way out the door and popped it open to hold it over his soulmate's head as soon as they were out in the pouring rain. He shivered as the cool air hit him through his t-shirt and belatedly realized he'd forgotten to grab his jacket. Loki wrapped an arm around his shoulders a moment later, though, and he savored the bit of warmth the other man gave off. His grin was back full-force as he looked up at the taller man.

"So, your place or mine?"

Yeah, there was something to be said for having employees you could dump your store on when you finally found your soulmate, too. Clint would be fine…as long as no customers showered up. Eh. Whatever. Not Tony's problem right now.

A/N: Please review and let me know what you thought! It is always great to hear from my readers!


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